


nothing's wrong with them, your honor, they're just dumb

by alovelylilt



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Gen, Humor, Mutual Pining, Pining, Roommates, also there is a fair bit of swearing in this so! just an fyi, rini being idiots? it's more likely that you'd think, rini live together and are childhood best friends, the humor is solely due to rini's stupidity, there are some chat fic elements to this as well, they're also in acapella groups bc i say so
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-03-01 08:27:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23348416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alovelylilt/pseuds/alovelylilt
Summary: Ricky is stupid in love. Nini is just stupid.———(based off of an au prompt found on tumblr: "there are love letters coming in the mail but with nothing written on the outside, not even a name, so i always give them to you, because i just assume they're for you")
Relationships: Ricky Bowen/Nini Salazar-Roberts
Comments: 24
Kudos: 140





	nothing's wrong with them, your honor, they're just dumb

**Author's Note:**

> yo i rly do be churning out these fics like nobody's business....... it is truly bc im avoiding doing this ridiculously overdue, massive project for school so here i am on ao3 instead! anyways, disclaimers:  
> -i was looking at au ideas on tumblr again, and user agirlnamedjane has a list of roommate aus, one of which was: "there are love letters coming in the mail but with nothing written on the outside, not even a name, so i always give them to you, because i just assume they're for you because i think i've seen you holding one of the envelopes before and you're the kind of person that has a secret admirer, definitely not me..."  
> -i adapted that prompt for rini in college and added in acapella groups for purely self-indulgent purposes  
> -the "smad" thing is from another one of those infamous incorrect quote memes
> 
> notes for the story: in case it isn't clear, ej is elton john, ricky is dicky, carlos is carLOSING IT, seb is seb yeehaw matthew-smith, kourtney is all love in these kourts, nini is nay nay, big red is red, taylor swift's best album, ashlyn is high priestess moon, and gina is gina, not 17, still the dancing queen (many of these names come from various rini social media au writers on twitter!)
> 
> enjoy!!

Someone has been leaving plain white envelopes in their mailbox. Nini isn’t sure who, because there’s nothing written on the envelopes, but they’re pretty damn persistent. The envelopes come once a week, every week, always on a Sunday. Nini manages to tamp down her inquisitive nature for about two months of this before she snaps and decides to open one.

“I’m going to do it,” she declares. It’s a Sunday morning, and her and Ricky are sitting in their apartment, doing the crossword like always. Ever since they were kids and could read, they’d do crosswords together every Sunday. They’ve only ever missed a Sunday for family emergencies, absolutely non-negotiable events, and that one time Ricky skateboarded into a tree and had to get three stitches. Significant others came and went, but the sanctity of Sunday crossword puzzles was never broken. 

“Okay,” Ricky agrees absentmindedly, crossing out a hint and filling in the corresponding boxes. 

“I’m serious, Ricky, I’m going to open one.” Nini points to the stack of envelopes that had been accumulating on their little kitchen island for months. “I’ve respected their privacy, right? I waited two months for someone to knock on our door and collect these!”

Ricky finally looks up from the crossword, his glasses slipping down his nose as he peers owlishly at her. “Yeah, Neens, you’re a regular Mother Theresa,” he replies dryly, immediately returning to the crossword puzzle.

She swats at his shoulder and he ducks away easily without even looking. It’s second-nature, the rhythm between them— they’ve known each other since kindergarten, after all, and they’ve been best friends for just as long. Even Ricky’s move to Chicago after his parents got divorced in their junior year of high school couldn’t keep them apart for long; as soon as they found out they’d be going to the same college, they had gotten an off-campus apartment together. 

“I’m doing it!” Nini warns him. 

Ricky sighs, taking his glasses off. He only wears them to read or write things up close, and Nini always makes fun of him for having what she calls _old man vision_. “Okay, okay, I’m paying attention. Go ahead, open it.”

Nini delicately peels back the most recent envelope and extracts a small piece of paper from it. The piece of paper looks like it’s been torn off from a postcard, and Nini frowns at it. “This is kinda creepy,” she says. 

Ricky tries not to look offended. “What? Why?”

“I mean, tearing a piece off of a postcard and mailing it seems a little serial killer-y.” Nini squints at the words. “Their penmanship is horrible,” she declares. “Hope you’re into that,” she adds, tossing the postcard piece and the envelope at him. 

He fumbles as he tries to catch the items. “Why are you giving this to _me_?”

Nini smirks. “Well, it’s for you, isn’t it? It says, _I love the way your smile makes the whole world go away_. You’ve obviously got a secret admirer, Ricky.”

“How are you so sure it’s _my_ secret admirer and not _yours_?” he counters. 

Nini laughs. “Oh c’mon, don’t act humble with me, Mr. Campus Hotshot. Half of this school is in love with you and your voice.” It’s true; Ricky is well known for his role as the president of the college’s premier male acapella group. Nini’s the president of the college’s premier female acapella group, not that anyone’s counting, but there’s no justice in this world, and her group doesn’t get nearly the same amount of attention as the boys do. Nini can understand it, though; her best friend is a skinny white boy with curly brown hair and big doe eyes, and when he smiles really hard, a dimple peeks out under his left cheekbone. On top of that, he’s friendly and kind to everyone he meets, and he’s just goofy enough in an endearing way that he’s impossible to dislike. 

Ricky squirms in his seat under Nini’s scrutiny. _God, she’s so_ _oblivious_ , he thinks. _I love her so much._ He clears his throat, placing the postcard back into the envelope. “So?” He motions to the rest of the stack of envelopes. “Open the rest of them!”

Nini raises an eyebrow at him. “You want me to read you the love letters from your secret admirer?”

Ricky shrugs. “Why not? We share everything else with each other, don’t we?”

“Yeah, but this isn’t really the same as all that other stuff…”

“It’s only weird if you make it weird, Nini.” He sticks his tongue out at her childishly. 

“Fine.” She rolls her eyes and gets to work on unsealing all of the envelopes. “ _I love your eyes_ ,” she reads aloud. “Okay, starting off kind of boring, but whatever. Ooh, what’s this? _I love how you always hold the door open for everyone, even if they’re really far away from the door_.” She laughs. “That one’s kinda funny.”

“Gimme those,” Ricky grumbles, snatching them out of her hands. 

“Okay, weirdo. Didn’t think you’d like the idea of having a secret admirer so much, but whatever. Here’s the next one: _I love it when you put your hair up_. Oh my god, is this referring to that little man bun you had last month, before you finally let me cut your hair?” Nini claps a hand over her mouth, chortling. 

Ricky gives her a deadpan look. Nini may interpret it as lack of amusement towards her teasing, but Ricky’s really wondering how she could be so dense. The note is obviously referring to the elegant curve of her neck that is usually hidden by the sweep of her long hair, but whatever. 

“Sorry, sorry, I’ll stop!” Nini giggles, trying to stifle the last of her laughter. “I’ll be serious now, I promise. Okay, the next one says, _I love the look you get on your face when you’re really concentrating on something_.” Nini clicks her tongue. “Damn, they must _really_ like you. Your concentration face is ugly.” 

He throws his pencil at her lightheartedly and thinks about the way her eyebrows scrunch together and her tongue pokes out of the right side of her mouth when she’s really focused.

“Nice try, loser.” Nini catches the pencil easily. “Hmm, this one says, _I love the way you never back down from a fight_. Hey, I’d agree with that one, Ricky!”

“Thanks, Neens. Y’know, I’d say the same for you.” Their shared stubbornness has gotten them into plenty of trouble before, both with others and with each other. But at the end of every stupid fight, they’d always come back together at the end of the week for their Sunday crossword puzzle, and then all would be right in the world again. 

“There’s only two left. _I love your height_ — that’s a little shallow, but okay.” Nini frowns. Ricky suppresses an eyeroll. She’s the perfect height to allow him to press kisses to her forehead, but it’s not like she’s going to realize that any time soon. 

“Last one! _I love the way you smell_. That’s really creepy, Ricky, are you sure you don’t have a stalker?” Nini peers at him, concerned. 

“Yes, I’m sure.” He can barely get the words out, he’s so exasperated. 

“If you say so.” Nini looks unconvinced, but she brushes it aside quickly. “Well, now that we’ve got that all sorted out, I feel like a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders!”

“Really?” Ricky feels like a weight has just been dropped on _his_ shoulders. 

“Yeah! It’s been bugging me for weeks.” Nini shoves the pile of envelopes and various stationary— notebook paper, sticky notes, corners of napkins, etc.— at him. “You wanna keep those or something? Anyways, scoot over! Lemme work on the crossword with you.” 

Nini drags her stool over to his side of the kitchen island, pressing in close as she pours over the crossword. Ricky gets a whiff of her scent— amber and honey, like the perfume she uses and the candles she likes to light around the apartment— and sighs. On the one hand, he can’t believe he’d gone and done the cliched thing by falling in love with his best friend. On the other hand, he commends himself for holding out for so long. Falling in love with her was so easy; it felt like he was born to do nothing else other than loving her. It’s just his luck that falling in love with her was the easy part; getting her to realize it is another story altogether. 

* * *

“... so yeah, I’ve been leaving her these love letters every Sunday, hoping that she’ll give in to her curiosity— Nini’s nosy as hell, you know that— and open one up one week. And get this, she finally caved today, but she thought that they were for _me_!” Ricky exclaims, gesticulating wildly. 

“She thought you were sending yourself love letters?” Big Red’s eyebrows furrow. 

“No, she thought someone _else_ was sending me love letters. Like a secret admirer or something,” Ricky explains impatiently. “But seriously, how stupid can she be? The letters are obviously from me to her! Who else would be able to get them into our mailbox without writing an address on the front or anything?”

Big Red raises an eyebrow. “I dunno, Ricky, it’s not really that obvious… I mean, how is she supposed to know that they’re for her if you don’t address them to her?”

Ricky pauses, looking stunned. “Um. Well, shit. I guess I hadn’t thought of that.” 

“It’s been two months of these letters, and you’ve never thought of actually writing her _name_ on them?” Big Red shakes his head. “You’re _both_ stupid.” 

Ricky frowns. “She has to realize it eventually, right? I’ll just keep sending them and getting more specific with what I say. That way, she’s bound to figure out that it’s me.”

“And you’re still not going to put her name on the envelope?”

“No, of course not! That would break the pattern, Red, duh.” 

“The pattern, of course, how could I forget,” Big Red replies dryly. He loves his friends and he’ll do just about anything for them, but Ricky and Nini possess a singular kind of idiocy that seems to exist only towards one another, and sometimes it makes Big Red want to bang his head against a wall. The rest of their friend group feels the same way; they’ve been placing bets on how long it’ll take for Ricky and Nini to finally bite the bullet and start dating, but so far the pot is at $500 and no one’s predictions have come true. It doesn’t help that Ricky and Nini have been acting like a married couple for so long, it already feels like they’re dating. And yet, they go and pull shit like this. 

Big Red shakes his head, pulling out his phone to text the group chat without Ricky and Nini, telling them about this latest development involving the love letters. 

***ricky and nini, sitting in a tree, just sitting, not k-i-s-s-i-n-g bc they’re cowards***

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : so yeah nini’s never gonna realize that the letters are for her

_carLOSING IT_ : i thought there was one dumb bitch in that apartment but turns out there are TWO

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : dots luv…………

_all love in these kourts_ : i hate it here i rly do

_elton john_ : f in the chat for rini

_carLOSING IT_ : f

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : f

_high priestess moon_ : f

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : f

_all love in these kourts_ : f

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : f

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : hahahahahaha this is probably what ricky’s last brain cell does all day

* * *

***laid ease***

_nay nay_ : does anyone know a six-letter word for a mix between sad and mad? ricky and i are racing on a crossword but we’re doing him and the guys vs. me and y’all so like i’m not worried

_all love in these kourts_ : desolate

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : malcontent

_high priestess moon_ : disgruntled 

_nay nay_ : none of those are six letters but okay

 _nay nay_ : lmao ricky said ej said smad, which is STILL not six letters

 _nay nay_ : the answer is sullen in case anyone was wondering

_all love in these kourts_ : we weren’t <3

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : n e ways what’s this i hear about love letters

_nay nay_ : omg yeah someone’s been leaving unmarked love letters for ricky in our mailbox! do u guys think i should be worried?

_high priestess moon_ : ricky would never choose some random secret admirer over u nini

_nay nay_ : uh what lol i mean like should i be worried about his safety?? some of the letters are rly specific and it sounds like he has a stalker!

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : …….. no i think ur fine

_nay nay_ : oh okay haha

 _nay nay_ : wait what do u mean he would choose me

 _nay nay_ : choose me for what

 _nay nay_ : guys?

* * *

***ricky and nini, sitting in a tree, just sitting, not k-i-s-s-i-n-g bc they’re cowards***

_all love in these kourts_ : so i know i usually vouch for nini being smarter than ricky but i can’t do that in good conscience any more

_carLOSING IT_ : wbk

_high priestess moon_ : i can’t believe ej said “smad”

_elton john_ : did i ask for ur opinion

_high priestess moon_ : no <3

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : it’s okay ej u can’t get any stupider than ricky and nini

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : today i overheard nini talking about how her and ricky are going to repaint one of the walls in their kitchen to reflect the memories from their childhood. i almost threw up in my mouth

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : omg braver than the u.s. marines

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : thank u, thank u. n e ways they’re painting a timeline and we’re part of their childhood too so we’re all invited to help them paint

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : aw that’s so cute! when do they want us to come?

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : after the spring acapella concert. so like in a month

_carLOSING IT_ : imagine having ur life planned out all the way to the next month

_elton john_ : imagine having ur life planned out

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : imagine having a life

_all love in these kourts_ : sebby!! what’s wrong who hurt u baby

_elton john_ : who r we fighting? i’ll fight anyone i’ll even fight myself

_carLOSING IT_ : usually i refrain from joining in on ej’s neanderthal tendencies but yeah just give me a name honey, they’ll be dust

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : omg no u guys i just wanted to join in on the joke :((

_high priestess moon_ : oh thank god i just got my nails done (i would chip them for u tho seb)

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : :D

* * *

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, both Ricky and Nini’s acapella groups are rehearsing overtime for the singing telegrams that their groups deliver to raise money for charity. This year, Ricky’s group is donating to their local, underfunded after school arts program, and Nini’s group is donating to their local food bank. The two of them are sprawled out on the floor of their living room, arts and crafts materials spread out around them as they make posters to advertise the singing telegrams for their groups.

Nini’s got her concentration face on, with her eyebrows scrunched together and her tongue poking out of the right side of her mouth. Ricky has his concentration face on, too, but Nini’s right— it’s not the prettiest sight in the world. She glances up from her poster to catch him making that face right now, his features contorted in a way that unfortunately makes him look constipated. She thinks it’s cute regardless.

“So… any updates on your secret admirer?” she asks, trying not to sound too curious.

“Just ask me if you can read the latest letter, Nini, I know you want to,” he responds, flicking an unimpressed glance at her. “Nosy Nancy.”

“ _Hey_ , I’m just looking out for you! What if they’re a serial killer or something? Wouldn’t be surprised, from what I saw of their handwriting.”

“What, we’re judging people by their handwriting now?”

“I’m just _saying_ , it can be an indicator of someone’s personality! Look at yours, for example. It’s so nice and rounded, it just gives off good energy!” Nini insists, pointing to his poster. 

“My handwriting is only nice because _you_ made me practice every day in first grade,” he points out. Nini has always been obsessed with penmanship; it’s somewhat of a grandma-like quality, but Ricky thinks it’s endearing.

“Yeah, and you grew up to thank me for it, didn’t you?” Nini tosses her hair over her shoulder smugly. “So, what did the latest letter say?”

Ricky takes it out of his pocket and slides it over to her. “See for yourself.”

“Wow, you keep the letters on you? Must be important to you,” Nini jokes weakly. She hopes Ricky doesn’t notice how her voice wavered on the word _important_.

Ricky finally pauses in his poster making, catching her gaze. “Yeah,” he says finally. “They are.”

Nini’s heart thumps dully in her chest, and she thinks to herself, _oh_. To mask the hurt that’s coursing through her veins, she busies herself with opening the envelope and reading its contents. “ _I love how cute you look when you play basketball, even though you suck at it_. Uh, what? When was the last time you played basketball?”

“Not since I played Troy in our high school production of _High School Musica_ _l_ ,” he says, trying to give her a significant look.

“Not since high school… oh my god!” Nini sits ram-rod straight, realization dawning in her eyes. 

_Yes_ , Ricky chants in his head, _this is it! She’s finally getting it!_

“It’s EJ!” Nini yelps.

“What?” he squawks.

“Yeah, it’s gotta be him! Think about it, Ricky, who else would’ve seen you play basketball besides the guy who played Chad? Oh my god, what are we gonna do about this? EJ’s in love with you!”

Ricky has to take several deep breaths before he can answer her. “Nini, I promise you it isn’t EJ.”

“What? Why not?”

He scrambles for a reason. “W-Well, look at the handwriting! It’s legible! If it was EJ, we wouldn’t be able to read anything he wrote.”

Nini’s face falls. “Oh. I guess you’re right. Hmm, I guess that just leaves anyone else who went to high school with us, which is a lot of people if you think about it…” 

While Nini continues to conjecture about the identity of his secret admirer, Ricky pulls out his phone and texts the boys.

***the boys are back in town (they never left)***

_dicky_ : so i assume red told u all abt the love letters

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : WAT?! Y WOULD U SAY THAT IM SO OFFENDED but yeah i totally told them

_carLOSING IT_ : now that we’re all on the same page… ricky what’d u do

_dicky_ : what why are u assuming i did something

_carLOSING IT_ : ur track record doesn’t leave much to the imagination

_dicky_ : … fair enough. okay so nini was reading the latest letter and i thought FOR SURE she’d get it this time bc i made it really specific! i wrote that i love how cute she looks when she plays basketball even though she sucks at it! 

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : is that supposed to be romantic?

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : hets. smh 

_dicky_ : ANYWAYS. there’s lit rally only one person who’s seen her play basketball, and it’s me! i helped her practice when we had to do that scene in hsm! but u know what she said? she said it must be ej. she thinks ej is my secret admirer!

_elton john:_ hey! u would only be so lucky to get a piece of this

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : how’d u convince her it wasn’t ej?

_dicky_ : i said the handwriting was too good to be his

_elton john_ : yeah okay that’s fair

_carLOSING IT_ : actually wait how did she not recognize ur handwriting? didn’t she like teach u how to write or something

_dicky_ : we learned TOGETHER, carlos. and i’ve been writing the notes with my left hand to throw her off

_elton john_ : wtf why would u want to throw her off

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : yeah i thought the whole point was to get her to realize that the letters are from u and then u make out or something?

_carLOSING IT_ : also wait a second, wouldn’t the basketball thing apply to anyone who saw our high school production of hsm? like how is she supposed to know that it’s directed at her

_dicky_ : uhhhhhh okay these are all good points. idk i wasn’t really thinking that far ahead when i started and now it’s too late to change anything!!!!! guys help what do i do

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : just tell her how u feel abt her?

_dicky_ : serious answers only!!!! sry seb u know i love u but cmon that’s just silly. what if she doesn’t feel the same way

_carLOSING IT_ : what if she doesn’t feel the same— i rly cannot with the hets

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : though he may be a thot, he is still dicky, no thoughts, head empty

_dicky_ : okay but srsly what do i do

_elton john_ : keep it up buddy i’m sure you’ll get to her eventually

_dicky_ : okay!!!!

* * *

***ricky and nini, sitting in a tree, just sitting, not k-i-s-s-i-n-g bc they’re cowards***

_all love in these kourts_ : why would u tell him to KEEP IT UP

 _all love in these kourts_ : IT ISN’T WORKING!

_elton john_ : idk i didn’t think he’d take me seriously!

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : it rly do be dumbasses upon dumbasses out here

_carLOSING IT_ : a forest of dumbasses, if u will

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : this is so silly! i’m gonna send them singing telegrams from each other. maybe singing love songs to each other will get them to realize that they’re lit rally in love?

_high priestess moon_ : finally, some good food. i always knew seb was the only smart one here

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : can’t argue with that

* * *

“If one more person submits a singing telegram where they request Can’t Help Falling In Love With You, I’m going to scream,” Nini declares. Her and Ashlyn are sitting in a practice room on the night before Valentine’s Day, compiling the last of the singing telegram requests for their acapella group. 

“As musical director, I’m gonna have to agree with you, Neens. It’s a beautiful song, but not so beautiful after the tenth time performing it to some random kid in a lecture hall.” Ashlyn frowns at her computer. “Did you see the request for Buy You A Drank? Is this person serious?”

Nini leans over to check. “And they even donated 50 bucks, too. I guess we have to do it. I hate this.”

Ashlyn rubs her shoulder sympathetically.. “Just think of how many people the food bank helps, Nini.”

“No, not that. I hate this stupid holiday, Why does everyone need to be in love? Why are there so many good significant others sending their partners cute songs? Do they have to rub their love in my face?” Nini rants, letting her head fall forward against the piano. Petulantly, she smashes a few keys.

Ashlyn winces at the discordant sounds. “Something on your mind, Neens?” she asks delicately. Nini usually loves Valentine’s Day; true to her nature, she adores the sweet affection imbued in the holiday, and she usually never begrudges couples their happiness, even when she’s single.

Nini makes some sort of unintelligible sound.

“C’mon, Nini,” Ashlyn coaxes. “You might feel better if you talk to someone about it.”

Nini huffs and straightens back up, turning to face Ashlyn more fully. “You know how Ricky’s been getting love letters from a secret admirer recently?”

Ashlyn nods, trying to keep her expression impassive. Does she know about the letters? Oh, does she _ever_.

“I think he really likes them. He keeps the letters on him, Ashlyn! I asked to see one the other day, and he just pulled it right out of his pocket. Ricky always loses whatever he puts in his pockets— I got him one of those messenger bags so he doesn’t keep losing things, you know— but he hasn’t lost the letters!”

“Um, maybe he just likes the attention?”

Nini shakes her head vehemently. “He gets attention all the time, Ash. No, I think he really likes whoever’s behind the letters. I tease him about the letters sometimes because they’re kinda cheesy and some of them are downright creepy, but he always defends them!”

“Okay, but that doesn’t have to mean anything, Nini.”

“You haven’t seen the look he gets in his eyes when I read them out loud to him. He looks like he’s in love. And I know I should be happy for him, because it’s such a rom-com story and I bet whoever is writing these letters is absolutely lovely, but I just hate it so much because I really thought he might _finally_ feel something for me. Am I the worst friend ever, or what?”

Ashlyn is speechless for a moment. When she finally finds the words, she can’t say them fast enough, “Nini, are you in love with him?”

“What? Yeah, of course I am. Isn’t it obvious?”

“Well, _yeah_ , but I didn’t know _you_ knew!”

Nini shrugs. “Yeah, I’ve known for a while now. Actually, I thought I told you all?”

“Nope. You definitely did not.”

“Oops. I feel like I’ve been in love with him for so long that it’s just a fact of the universe now… Anyways, I didn’t tell him when I figured it out because we have so much history, you know? It felt… scary, like it was the biggest risk I could possibly take. And then, when I was finally feeling brave enough to do it, those damn letters started coming.” Nini shakes her head forlornly. “And now he’s gone and fallen in love with whoever’s behind those letters, and it’s too late.”

Ashlyn grabs her by the shoulders and holds her firmly. “Nini. I promise you it’s not too late. That boy looks at you like you hung the stars in the sky, and I’d bet so much money— five hundred dollars, in fact— that he loves you more than anyone else in the world.”

“I’m sure he does, but just in a platonic way.” Nini sighs. “Whatever, it’s getting late. I’ll see you tomorrow, Ash. Happy early Valentine’s Day.”

* * *

***ricky and nini, sitting in a tree, just sitting, not k-i-s-s-i-n-g bc they’re cowards***

_high priestess moon_ : so nini’s in love with ricky

_elton john_ : uhhhh yeah isn’t that the whole point of this group chat?

_high priestess moon_ : no but like she finally KNOWS. like i’m saying she just told me that she’s in love with ricky AND she thought she already told us because, i quote, “i feel like i’ve been in love with him for so long that it’s just a fact of the universe now.”

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ : damn right it is

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : wow now i wonder which one of them figured it out first

 _gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : we all thought it was ricky bc of the letters but like maybe we should have had more faith in nini

_all love in these kourts_ : have u met nini? or ricky?

_gina, not 17, still the dancing queen_ : fair point. i’m surprised either of them figured it out

_high priestess moon_ : guys, FOCUS. rini are finally on the same page! well, not really. they still don’t know that they’re in love with each other, but at least they know they’re in love

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ : baby steps, people

_carLOSING IT_ : at this rate, we’ll be lucky if they get together before i pay off my student loans

* * *

It’s another Sunday morning, and Ricky and Nini are doing the crossword together while soft music plays in the background. She’s mumbling words to herself, trying to find the right one for the clue they’re stuck on. She’s still in her pajamas, the ones with the clouds on them, and her hair is held together in a bun with a pen that Ricky is sure she stole from him. 

Looking at her, Ricky is suddenly struck by the image of her sitting at a larger kitchen island, her hair streaked with white and her hands trembling a little around her pencil, with tiny children running underfoot. Nini is his past, Nini is his present, and he’d always figured that she’d be his future, too. Ricky isn’t one to make big plans— that’s more Nini’s thing— but he can see the life they could have all too clearly; the house, the children, the grandchildren, the joys and the sorrows, the beauty and the pain, all of it. His eyes fall to the newest envelope on the table and he grimaces. He knows exactly how he’d like to spend the rest of his life with Nini, if only she’d realize that he’s in love with her.

“So.” He clears his throat, grabbing her attention. “You wanna open that up or something?”

Nini makes a face. “Not really.”

Ricky tries not to physically lurch back at her words. “What? Why?”

Nini rolls her eyes. He sounds so goddamn _wounded_ , and over what, a letter from a secret admirer? Nini doubts that whoever is writing these letters knows him half as well as she does. He’s weaved into the threads of her soul in inextricable ways, and she only wants him to be happy for as long as he lives, because his smile can power entire countries. It sure as hell powers her foolish little heart, which can’t stand to see him sad; she gives in and opens the envelope.

“Want me to read it out loud, you big baby?” Nini plows on without waiting to hear his response. She isn’t sure why she’s subjecting herself to the pain of reading someone else’s love letters to him, but the sooner she can get this over with, the better. “ _I love how you leave all the green Skittles for me, because you know I like them the most_. Wow, Ricky, have you been sharing Skittles with someone else?” Nini forces a laugh, throwing the letter and the envelope at him, knowing that it’ll distract him because he has terrible hand-eye coordination. Predictably, he flails around for a bit, giving her enough time to blink back the angry tears that had formed in her eyes. Sharing Skittles is _their_ thing.

Finally, Ricky collects the letter and the envelope. She doesn’t miss how carefully he handles them. “What? No, Nini, I haven’t!” he protests.

“Mmhm. Sure. You know, it’s okay, Ricky, it’s just candy. In fact, I wouldn’t care if you did start sharing with someone else! Maybe I will, too,” Nini babbles, not really sure of what she’s saying anymore.

“Really?” Ricky’s voice is quiet.

“Yeah, I mean, sharing is caring, right?” Nini mumbles, refusing to meet his eyes. It’s a total lie— Nini hates sharing her Skittles, and she only does it with Ricky because he always picks out the purple ones for her after she told him once that she hates them.

Silence pervades the kitchen, tense and heavy. Nini calls herself all kinds of silly for bringing up the letters in the first place, and Ricky tries to push down the ire that rises in him at the idea of Nini sharing her Skittles with anyone else. 

“Well, you can’t share your Skittles with anyone if I buy them all first,” he blurts out.

Nini’s head whips around. “What?”

“Uh, I just mean that, you know, I’ll buy up all the Skittles in the world, and then you can only share them with me,” he splutters. 

Nini laughs. “That doesn’t make any sense, Ricky.”

He knows it doesn’t make any sense, but it got her to laugh, so who cares. “Yeah, I know.” 

With the atmosphere sufficiently lightened, they return to the crossword, the silence now peaceful and comforting. After a while, the music in the background changes to an old Fred Astaire song; it’s the same one Ricky’s group sang to Nini on Valentine’s Day. He smiles at the memory and reminds himself to thank Seb for sending them singing telegrams from each other. 

“Hey.” He nudges Nini gently. “Wanna dance?”

She blinks, looking around them. “Now? Here? With me?”

“Now. Here. With you.” He stands up and holds a hand out to her. The words are on the tip of his tongue: _I only ever want to dance with you_. 

“This is so random, Ricky, what’s gotten into you?” Despite her words, Nini places her hand in his and allows herself to be pulled into his chest. Her head fits in the crook of his neck like it was made for him, and his hands slide around her waist as easily as breathing. 

“Nothin’. Just wanna dance with you,” he mumbles, his words muffled into her hair. “ _Just the way you look tonight_ ,” he sings to her, following along with the music as they sway back and forth.

“These cloud pajamas really do it for you, huh?” she jokes, trying to calm the racing of her heart. Her stomach is flip-flopping wildly at this moment; this precious, golden moment.

“Everything about you does it for me, Neens,” he says, low and soft. She shivers involuntarily at the way the words reverberate in his chest and the meaning behind them. 

“Also, it’s not even nighttime. So wouldn’t it be ‘just the way you look this morning’ or something?” she rambles, her fingers skittering against the back of his neck. 

He just hums in response, pulling back from where he had rested his cheek against her head to look at her. Whatever else she was going to say fades away as she holds his wondering gaze. He looks like he’s in awe of her, as if her mere presence is enough to shake the ground they stand on. 

The song ends, startling them out of their daze. Still, Nini doesn’t want this moment to end, so she starts singing softly, the words coming easily to her after she and her acapella group had sung them to Ricky on Valentine’s Day. “ _All the colors of the rainbow, hidden ‘neath my skin_ ,” she begins. He joins in on the lower harmony, and even though the song is meant to be sung in multi-part harmony, she thinks this is perfect. They stay like that, singing bits and pieces from various songs to each other, swaying in the kitchen under the nascent warmth of the morning glow. It's a scene from a dream, their own private paradise.

* * *

“You guys are so married, it’s kinda gross,” says Gina. Nini has just finished telling her about her Sunday with Ricky, while Gina works through some choreography for the spring acapella concert. “Like, I know your groups are paying me to do this choreography, but I would accept you and Ricky getting together as payment, too.”

Nini sighs from where she’s sitting on the floor. “You and me both, Gi.”

“And this song choice for the finale? _Lucky_? Really, you guys are so obvious.” Gina shakes her head. The song is about being in love with your best friend, and Nini and Ricky have chosen it as the song for the finale that their two groups will combine together to perform. “I mean, I just don’t understand how you two can make a song choice like this and _not_ talk about your feelings for each other.”

Nini shrugs. “We just… avoid it, I guess. I don’t know, I feel like I’m getting whiplash at this point. We’ll do stuff like we did that Sunday, and Ricky will say the sweetest things, but then he’ll come around and ask me if I can find a scrapbook so he can save all the love letters in it. Like, what the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Gina gives the top of Nini’s head a baleful look. “Wish I could tell you, Neens.” She pauses in the middle of a kick ball change. “Wait, didn’t all that stuff with the dancing and the singing happen two Sundays ago?”

“Yeah, why?”

“So that means there must have been another letter this past Sunday! What’d it say?” Gina’s hopeful that maybe this letter was finally specific enough to get Nini to realize that Ricky wrote it for her.

“ _I love the magic we create when we sing together_ ,” Nini recites listlessly. “So, not only is he sharing his Skittles with someone else, now he’s singing with them, too.”

Gina slips as she comes out of a turn, crashing into the floor. Nini instantly goes to her, asking if she’s okay. “Yeah, I’m fine, just got distracted!” Gina laughs it off. “Um, do you wanna try this choreography and let me know if it’s doable?” 

As they go through the choreography, Gina resists the urge to grab Nini by the shoulders and shake her. The force of Nini’s blindness to Ricky’s feelings had quite literally knocked Gina off of her feet, and yet, Gina knows that any intervention at this point would be useless. Ricky and Nini need to figure this out themselves, but they better do it fast, because this back-and-forth was taking a toll on both of them. 

* * *

A week later, Ricky and Seb are tracing out a timeline in pencil on one wall of Ricky's kitchen. EJ has been sent out to get paint from Home Depot, in preparation for when the whole group will come to help paint the wall the next week. 

“What do you think is taking EJ so long?” Ricky asks, glancing at the clock. “It’s been, like, an hour and a half now.”

Seb laughs, stepping away from the kitchen wall for a second to appraise his work. “Knowing him, he probably got stuck comparing different shades of the same color.”

“I gave him the list that Nini wrote down! It has all the paint names and everything; this literally could not be easier.” 

Seb frowns, squinting at the lump in Ricky’s back pocket. “Are you sure? It looks like there’s a note in your pocket.”

Ricky reaches back and pulls it out, then groans. “Ah, damn it. I gave EJ the letter that Nini’s supposed to get this Sunday. _This_ is the list of paint names. Oh well, I’ll just text it to him and ask him to bring the letter back.”

“So… speaking of Nini.” Seb wiggles his eyebrows at Ricky. “How’s that whole thing going?”

Ricky grunts. “Terribly. I dunno, it’s almost been three months, and she still hasn’t figured it out yet. At this point, I feel like she’s purposefully pretending like she doesn’t know so she can let me down easy. I mean, if she really had any sort of feelings for me, wouldn’t she have acted on them by now? And I gave her such a good opening with the letters, too!”

Ricky’s back is to him, so Seb feels comfortable pinching the bridge of his nose and sighing softly. “Ricky. She still doesn’t know that the letters are for her, or that you wrote them.”

“Yeah, but I’m telling you, I’ve been getting so specific that it’s impossible not to tell that I’m the one writing them.”

Seb wonders how two people who are normally so in touch with their emotions can be so obtuse. “I assure you, it’s quite possible. What does the letter for this Sunday say?”

“ _I love that our families love each other so much_. That’s a dead giveaway, isn’t it?” Ricky’s voice rises desperately. 

“Oh, Ricky. Sweet, stupid Ricky.”

“ _Hey_ , what’s that supposed to mean?”

* * *

It’s finally the day of the spring acapella concert, and Nini and Ricky are both bundles of buzzing energy. 

Kourtney’s doing Nini’s makeup, but it’s a difficult job when Nini’s eyes keep sliding over to where Ricky is chatting with Carlos in the green room. “Stop that!” Kourtney slaps Nini’s shoulder lightly.

“Sorry, sorry.” Nini laughs nervously. “I think I’m going to tell Ricky,” she whispers to Kourtney.

“Tell him that his tie is crooked? Yeah, it’s been bothering me since he walked in,” she agrees.

“No, I mean I’m going to tell him that I’m in love with him.”

Kourtney freezes. “You what?”

Nini shrugs. “I’m tired of not knowing how he feels. And I know our friendship is strong enough to withstand anything, so if he rejects me because he’s in love with whoever’s been sending those love letters, things might be awkward for a little while, but we’ll be fine. I don’t want to keep wondering and pining away, Kourt.”

“Oh, Nini, I’m so proud of you!” Kourtney gives her a half-hug, careful not to mess up her makeup.

Nini squirms a little, jittery from anticipation. “Thanks, Kourt. If it goes badly, can I come stay at yours for the night?”

“Of course, you don’t even have to ask.”

Across the room, Ricky and Carlos are having an animated debate.

“I’m telling you, man, I’m just gonna give up on the love letters after tomorrow,” Ricky declares.

Carlos pokes him in the chest impatiently. “Without even telling her that the letters are from you? Then it’ll all just go to waste! What are you going to do then, huh?”

“I dunno, I’ll just learn to live with it, or something. I’m not going to try to get over her, obviously. That would just be futile. But I can get used to it, I guess.”

“Get used to what?”

“To the feeling of unrequited love?”

Carlos throws his hands up. “Ricky, I’m going to say this once, and only once: stop being such a coward. I know it’s scary and I know it’s hard, but telling her how you feel at least opens the door to her feeling the same way, and I know she does. If you give up on the letters without telling her anything, you don’t even stand a chance at the happiness and the love you could have.”

Ricky blinks rapidly at him. “Carlos, that was…”

Carlos sniffs haughtily. “Extraordinarily insightful? Fantastic advice that you’re absolutely going to take?”

“All of the above, buddy.”

“That’s what I thought. Now, let me fix your tie!”

* * *

The concert goes off without a hitch, and everyone in the audience is on their feet by the time Nini and Ricky perform their solos in the finale. He twirls and dips her as she sings to him about how he makes it easier when life gets hard, and she blushes when he really does put a flower in her hair, just as the lyrics suggest. They dance around the stage as they sing about how lucky they are to be in love with their best friend, and a collective sigh goes up in the audience. It’s romantic in every sense of the word; both their hearts are beating in double time by the end of it. 

Backstage, Nini throws her arms around Ricky’s neck as he picks her up and spins her around.

“You were so good!” she gushes, beaming at him. 

“Can’t compare to you, angel,” he insists, setting her down. She blushes at the sweet name, and his grin grows wider at the sight. “C’mon, let’s go home and paint that wall.”

* * *

It’s past midnight by the time everyone is putting the finishing touches on the timeline, which shows the progression of Ricky, Nini, and all their friends from elementary school to college. 

“Y’know, I wanted to make fun of you guys for this, but it’s pretty damn special,” EJ admits. He points to a spot on the wall. “I can’t believe I forgot about that time we broke into poor Mrs. Barnaby’s yard to steal flowers from her garden because Ricky forgot to get Nini a corsage.”

Big Red grins. “Or what about that time we all stalked Carlos and Seb’s first date?”

Everybody chimes in with more memories, and laughter fills the air. Ricky’s heart feels so full he thinks it might burst; he doesn’t know what he did in a past life to deserve this, but he does know that he has the best friends in the world. As he catches Nini’s eye from across the room, he wonders if he’ll soon have the best girlfriend in the world, too. 

“Alright, alright, I love you all, but I’m gonna head out. It’s been a long day, and I have rehearsal tomorrow morning,” Gina sighs regretfully.

Seb yawns and leans into Carlos, his eyes drooping. “I think we’re gonna leave, too. It’s way past my bedtime.”

EJ looks confused. “I dunno, I feel kinda good, I’ll stay—” He’s cut off by Ashlyn, who slaps a hand over his mouth. She shoots him a significant look. 

“We have an early brunch with our parents tomorrow, don’t we?” She smiles sweetly at him, and he gulps, nodding. 

“You’ve got this, Nini,” Kourtney whispers, kissing Nini’s cheek before she exits.

Big Red claps a hand on Ricky’s shoulder. “Dude. I believe in you.” 

Ricky nods firmly. “Bye, guys. Thanks for coming!” 

When Ricky comes back to the kitchen, he finds Nini perched on the kitchen island, legs dangling as she admires the work they did with their friends.

“Remember when I sprained my ankle after I got my first skateboard?” Ricky murmurs, moving to lean against the counter across from where she sits. “And I was so embarrassed that I had to go to school with crutches, so you went and got a pair of crutches, too, just so I didn’t have to do it alone.”

Nini laughs at the memory. “Yeah, but I really did need those crutches after I twisted my knee during that musical rehearsal freshman year. I didn’t want to go to homecoming like that, so you stayed in with me instead.”

“We watched some truly terrible movies that night, didn’t we?” Ricky’s eyes twinkle at her. “What a life we’ve had, Nini.”

She rolls her eyes at him good-naturedly. “We’re still in college, Ricky. We’ve got a lot of life ahead of us.”

“Yeah. Hey, listen, I was going to give this to you tomorrow and just give up on the whole thing, but I was talking to Carlos, and everyone, really, and I figured, twelfth time’s the charm, right?” Ricky rambles, reaching into his back pocket to pull something out.

Nini’s heart stops for a moment. It’s another one of those damn letters. “I think it’s about time you started reading your love letters on your own,” she says quietly, looking into her lap.

“What— no, Nini, no no no, don’t do that.” He pushes himself off the counter and leans into her space, gently nudging her chin up. “Give me a chance, yeah?”

She huffs, crossing her arms. “A chance for what?” 

He hands her the envelope. “This is the last time, I promise.” He turns his stupid doe eyes on her, and she’s a goner.

“Fine. Whatever. It says, _I love everything about you_. Great, Ricky, that’s just fantastic. I’m glad your secret admirer is so ardent towards you, but—”

He presses forward against her impatiently, her knees falling apart to allow him to stand between her legs. “Nini! Can you just look at it, please? Closer?”

“Is there a secret message embedded in it or something?” Nini peers closely at the piece of paper. “Wait a second, this is… this is _your_ handwriting.”

He laughs softly. “Yeah, it is.” He finally wrote with his right hand this time. 

She squints at him. “You were writing love letters to yourself?”

“Are you kidding— Nini, they’re for you! The letters are for you! I’ve been writing them for months now, hoping that you’d realize, but you never did. It’s kinda my fault, too, because I never wrote your name on them or anything, and I wrote all the other ones with my left hand so you wouldn’t figure it out immediately, but _come on_ Nini, it was so obvious by the end!” Ricky runs out of air at the end of his big declaration and gasps, adrenaline running through his veins.

Nini just blinks at him, eyes wide and mouth open. “What?”

“I’m in love with you, Nini! I’ve probably been in love with you my whole life, even if I didn’t know it. And if you don’t feel the same way, that’s fine, but our friends were right, I’d rather tell you now and get rejected than never tell you and spend the rest of my life regretting it. So, here I am.” He throws his arms out, wide open. “Here I am, with all of me, telling you I love you and I want to be with you, like, forever, but we can start on a month-by-month basis or whatever if you want—”

Nini’s arms wrap around him in the tightest hug. “Ricky, you _idiot_ ,” she breathes into his ear. “I’m in love with you, too.” She pulls back to look at him. “I was going to tell you tonight, even though I thought you were in love with whoever was writing those letters, but I was going to tell you.”

“Can you say it again?” His pupils are blown wide, and he’s got that look on his face again: that wondrous, enchanted look that he gets when he’s in love. 

Nini’s fingers slip into his curls, lovingly, adoringly. “I’m in love with you, Ricky. I think I always have been, but we’ve never been smart when it comes to each other.”

“I’ve had this dream before,” he murmurs, pressing even closer into her. 

“Well, I heard that kissing really snaps you out of dreams,” she says, a bright smile lighting up her face.

“Really? Where’d you hear that from?” He’s just a breath away from her lips now.

She hums thoughtfully, and he shivers. “I think I saw it as a clue in a crossword once.”

He scrunches his nose at her. “Liar.” But he closes the last of the distance and kisses her anyway, sealing his lips against hers. She kisses him back and it feels like a miracle; Ricky’s sure that he’ll never want to kiss anyone else for the rest of his life. Nini’s heart just _sings_ ; she’s dizzy with joy. 

Too soon, she has to pull away, breathing heavily into the space between them. “Still think you’re dreaming?” she quips.

He grins cheekily at her. “Hmm, maybe. You’ll probably have to kiss me again, just to make sure.” 

* * *

Later, when both their lips are kiss-swollen and their hair mussed, Nini asks him to bring out the rest of the love letters so she can look at them again. After all, she’s got a whole new perspective on them now.

Curled up in her bed, Nini takes a second to just revel in what has transpired over the last hour.

“Whatcha thinkin’ about, angel?” Ricky slides into bed with her, wrapping his arm around her and pressing a kiss to her temple.

“You,” she replies truthfully. He blushes all the way to his ears.

“Stop flustering me and look at these letters,” he mumbles, hiding his face in her hair.

“Oh, you want _me_ to be flustered instead?” But she takes the stack from his hands anyways, and threads their fingers together.

He rests his head on her shoulder and points to one of the letters. “See, that one's written on a napkin from that diner you like so much, Nini.”

“Huh. I can’t believe I never noticed… oh my god, and that one’s written on a sticky note from my special stash!” As Nini goes through the rest of them, she realizes that the letters were all written on familiar pieces of stationary. “I’m so stupid,” she groans.

“Not gonna argue with you there. Hey, look, this one’s written on a postcard from when we went home to SLC together, remember?”

Nini settles into his chest, turning her eyes to the the ceiling, towards the glow-in-the-dark stars that Ricky had helped her put up. “So… we should repaint your room, Ricky.”

“Hmm? Why?”

She fiddles with his fingers. “Well, if you wanna just sleep here with me all the time, I wouldn’t be opposed to that. I know you like my room better, anyways.”

He makes an agreeable noise. “I just like _you_ better. But yeah, sure, let’s redo the other bedroom. What do you want to paint?”

“I’m thinking a mural this time? Ooh, maybe we can get our acapella groups to pitch in…”

They continue talking late into the night, giddy with love and basking in their newfound affection. It’s a scene from a dream, but it’s real this time; their own private paradise.

* * *

Their friends find out that they’re finally together when they come over to see the timeline again, which has been updated to reflect Ricky and Nini’s new relationship status. The $500 in the betting pool on their relationship goes towards more paint for what used to be Ricky’s bedroom; they have now decided to paint a giant crossword puzzle onto the walls.

***ricky and nini, sitting in a tree, FINALLY k-i-s-s-i-n-g***

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ added _dicky_ and _nay nay_ to the conversation

_red, taylor swift’s best album_ left the conversation

_all love in these kourts_ left the conversation

_elton john_ left the conversation

_yeehaw matthew-smith_ left the conversation

_gina, not 17, still the dancing_ queen left the conversation

_carLOSING IT_ left the conversation

_high priestess moon_ left the conversation

_dicky_ : uhhhh guys? what is this lol

_nay nay_ : guys? helloooooooo?

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> *okay so if you want to see what i had in mind for the performance of lucky, refer to these [two](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnStO9paSio) [videos](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6nvzwuilRA)  
> the unaccompanied minors version has much better soloists and a much better arrangement and i like their choreography better overall, but i would just substitute in some of the dancing that the soloists in the riffitide version do (only the non-cringey parts tho; sry to riffitide but their performance overall activated my fight-or-flight instinct)
> 
> (also i just remembered some basic html to insert links into notes so...... a win for me!)
> 
> as always, leave me ur thoughts and validation in the form of comments and kudos if u are feeling so inclined (also leave suggestions of things you'd like to see me write!! i most likely will not get to most of them since college is starting again soon but hey we'll see)
> 
> p.s. i've got another oneshot up and an ongoing series so check that out if u want!


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